


Not your average beach story

by Artfulstar



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Conflict, Established Relationship, F/M, Kissing, Movie: Teen Beach Movie, Music, Teen Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:34:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,078
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26307148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Artfulstar/pseuds/Artfulstar
Summary: When Rayla and Callum's relationship is threatened by a thing she tried to hide from him, they wish their summer could last forever.Turns out you should be aware of what you wish for.A Teen Beach Movie AU
Relationships: Callum & Rayla (The Dragon Prince), Callum/Rayla (The Dragon Prince)
Comments: 28
Kudos: 46





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> SO- I have literally zero excuses to be writing this. It all happened in the middle of a conversation with some friends on twitter and over at Discord. So, I just want to thank y'all for supporting me while I wrote this and I hope everyone likes it!

**October 18 th – 10:30 AM**

Rayla knew the schools on the other side of the border were weird. She had heard stories about the way they taught useless things for years and how the students actually never learn anything.

But she never expected they would waste their precious time where they could be learning some actual subjects. Talking in the middle of class, skipping class to gossip in the bathroom, organizing dozens of parties every year.

And apparently wasting three whole periods of class to watch a dumb movie she’d never heard of on the auditorium.

The elf sighed as she scanned the room for an empty seat. Most of the people were gathering in the front and not on the back thankfully. She would be left alone at least for now.

Rayla sighed and walked the steps up to the far back of the auditorium before she felt something on her way, so she tripped.

Rayla was fast enough to catch herself with her arms, but the laughter that erupted behind her made it clear whoever did that meant for her to fall. Rayla felt her blood boiling.

Besides her being the only elf in the entire senior year, she wasn’t the most… receptive person. That was on her.

But it wasn’t fair for those smooth-skulled humans to pick on her like this!

She glared at the trio that was laughing at her and for a second she thought of repeating the strange gesture humans did with their middle finger at people they’re mad at, but before she could do it, she remembered the lack of a fifth finger to make her middle finger a _middle finger._

So she just glared at them, making them gulp before she stood up and patted her jeans for any dust and continued her way up to the last row of chairs.

She finally found a chair that was obscured from the others and she sat on it, huffing and crossing her arms in front of her chest before she pulled the hood of her violet hoodie over her head, hiding her horns and most of her elven features.

She took out her phone from her pocket and unlocked it, scrolling through her unread messages from her dads.

She smiled at the photos of Asher, their 6-year-old dog, and the new member of the family, Onyx, an 8-month-old cat Rayla had yet to meet when she went back to their house next year.

She remembers the voice message she got from Ethari on the morning of his birthday, just him talking about Runaan’s gift for him while Onyx meowed on the background.

The lights on the auditorium went out as the movie started to play, but she couldn’t care less about it.

She opened her Instagram and checked the stories of her friends back in Xadia.

She was about to respond to a story of Nyx talking endlessly about her cat when she felt someone lightly touch her shoulder.

She glanced at them by the corner of her eye. It was a boy, probably her age, if not younger, but if he was here, he was a senior like her. He had a mop of chestnut hair sitting on top of his head and big and round green eyes. He was wearing a blue hoodie and a red-shirt under it and a red scarf with golden details around his neck.

“Can I sit here?” He asked, pointing at the seat at her left. She shrugged her shoulders before mumbling her answer, not taking her eyes off the phone screen.

“Suit yourself.”

He sat by her side, not bothering her for the first minutes of the movie.

Then the first musical number came up and he started singing together with the crowd of teens.

Rayla glared at him, but his eyes were sparkling as the scenes of the movie flashed on the screen.

When the musical number ended, he finally relaxed and looked at her, finding her sour expression glaring deep into his soul but he didn’t seem fazed, except-

“Hey, you’re the elf exchange student!” he whispered at her, probably after noticing the marks on her cheeks, her violet eyes, and her white hair.

“Yeah, what about it? Not gonna laugh at me like everyone does?” she rolled her eyes.

“No, not really.” He said sincerely, getting Rayla off-guard with it. She had been at this school for a month and a half and this boy was the first student to even spare her a glance that didn’t include mockery and/or pity.

Rayla heard the next song, a very groovy song coming up but again. She couldn’t care less about the movie.

Rayla took her hood down, exposing the rest of her elven features, her stubby black horns, and pointy ears.

“I’ve never seen an elf this close.” He said, not paying mind to the movie and staring directly at her. She felt a little self-conscious and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. The boy clearly noticed how weird he had sounded and his cheeks got red before he started playing with the end of his scarf and rambling, “S-Sorry! That sounded way weird than I intended! It’s not like you’re a zoo animal and-”

Rayla giggled at his nervousness and she saw the way he stopped his fiddling.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t be laughin’,” she said before composing herself, “actually, that’s the nicest thin’ someone has said to me since I entered this school.” She admitted and saw the way his eyes changed from nervousness to concern.

They stayed in silence for the next moments, Rayla fiddling with the cords of her hoodie as she waited for him to continue.

“I’m sorry they treat you like that.”

“It’s okay, I’m kinda used to it. Also, my glare can scare off any human.” She smirked at him before he laughed. Rayla felt herself warming up to this human.

“Not me, apparently” he shot back at her.

“It seems ya’re different, no survival instincts” she teased. Once again, Rayla could hear the next song coming up – _jeez how many songs does this movie have?_ she thought to herself.

“Maybe, but that just means I got to be the first nice person you met here.”

Rayla laughed once again, only to be shushed by some people in the rows in front of her. She glared at them and they went back to paying attention to the movie.

“See, survival instincts.” She whispered with a smile.

“I think I see it.” He whispered back and they both giggled. They stayed some moments in silence before Rayla spoke up.

“Ya’re pretty funny for a human.” She teased.

“You’re not very scary for an elf.” He teased back before realizing something. “Maybe _human_ and _elf_ are getting outdated. What’s your name?”

Rayla took a few moments to respond before she smiled.

“Rayla.” She finally said, “And yours?” the music number started to end as she was finally able to form the words the singer was singing.

_“_ _♪ Can't hold on any longer_ _♫”_

He smiled at her.

_“♪ And now I'm falling for you_ _♫”_

“Callum.”

* * *

**March 7 th – 3:42 PM**

“Callum, are ya even payin’ attention?” Rayla asked as she waved her hand in front of his face. He blinked his eyes twice before looking at her.

“Sorry, can you repeat that last part?” He asked bashfully and Rayla had to refrain from smiling like an idiot.

“Why did ya even propose me to teach ya about Xadian history if ya’re not even goin’ to pay attention to it?” Rayla leaned on the bean bag in Callum’s room with a smirk on her lips.

“Hey! I’m tutoring you in chemistry! Also, since you’re the only xadian in the entire senior year, lots of people want to have you as their tutor even though they treated you like garbage months ago when you arrived here and since you’re one of my best friends,” Rayla felt heat blossoming her cheeks when he mentioned the fact they’ve been friends for almost five months, “I can’t let them use you like that.”

“As if I wouldn’t be able to deny them myself.” She smirked at him before softening her features, “but thanks… for lookin’ out for me.”

“It’s no big deal, Rayla. That’s what friends do!” Rayla felt her heart squeeze a little at his words but she decided to ignore it and focused on her textbook again.

“Since ya’re not at all interested in hearin’ about The Stars Protector, I guess we should skip this chapter,” she looked at the time on her phone.

“Do you need to go back to your dorm yet?” He asked and Rayla had to refrain from smiling again at how sad he sounded.

“Not really, but the next chapter about the First Elves is really long. We should leave it for the next tutorin’ session.” She sighed and closed the textbook before reaching for her bag resting at the side of the bean bag.

“Are you leaving already?”

“Well, ya already finished explainin’ about organic chemistry and I got everythin’ I need for the exam next Tuesday, so I guess I should leave.” She put her textbook on her bag and got up from the comfy chair.

“Wait!” Callum grabbed her hand and she felt the heat creeping up to her cheeks at the touch of their hands, “You still got time! Lets just… hang out or something!”

“Ya’re very inclined to not let me leave,” she rolled her eyes fondly, “but sure, entertain me.”

Callum got up from his bean bag and approached the small speaker on his desk before pulling out his phone. Before rayla realized, the speaker blasted music. But she knew that music.

“Really? Is that musical the only thin’ on yer playlist?!”

“What?! Cruisin’ for a bruisin’ is the best song in the movie hands down!” he set his phone down and approached her.

“Shall we milady?” he tried doing an accent but it didn’t work. Rayla burst out laughing.

“There’s no milady here, _prince,_ ” she teased and Callum rubbed the back of his neck smiling.

“You’re never letting go of the fact my step-dad is royalty descendant go, right?”

“Not a chance, _yer majesty._ ” She wiggled her eyebrows and smirked.

“You’re insufferable.” He said, smiling and looking deep into her eyes. Rayla gulped as she felt her heart racing as she drowned into the emerald pools.

Before she did something she would regret later, she took a few steps back and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.

She wouldn’t be able to ignore the needs of her heart for long but for now, she was fine of just accepting to dance around Callum’s room to calm her heart.

* * *

**May 22 th – 9:20 PM**

Rayla stared at the cup in her hands. The reflection of her face mocking her intensely. She looked around the hall. Her classmates we’re clearly enjoying prom. She wasn’t.

“It’s fine Rayla. Just find Callum and ask him for a dance,” She tried encouraging her, “It’s gonna be fine.” She whispered the last part before drinking the contents of the cup to encourage herself.

She looked around the dance floor and spotted Callum all alone in a corner, a cup on a hand and the other hand on his pants pocket.

She gulped before straightening her silver dress and taking a final deep breath.

 _Maybe we can have a slow dance and maybe have our first kiss?_ She thought to herself, trying to

Callum didn’t seem to notice her approaching him up to she was just 5 feet from him. Rayla saw the way he smiled at her and she could feel her legs turning into jelly.

“Hey, Ray!” he said a little too excited which Rayla found adorable.

“Hey, Callum!” She smiled and approached him, until they were almost in front of each other, “Are ya enjoyin’ the party?”

“Eh, I mean, I’m not a big fan of parties, to begin with, you know that,” She smiled and took another sip of his drink, “but what about you? Are you enjoying it?”

“It’s been pretty borin’ so far, ya’ve been the highlight of it so far,” she said and felt her brain short-circuiting. _Did she really just flirt with him? Out of the blue? What was wrong with her?_

“Wow! I’m… flattered!” he said, rubbing the back of his neck bashfully with the hand that was previously in his pocket. Rayla’s eyes focused on the thing that was on it. For a split second, she saw a silvery ribbon and a few flowers.

A _corsage._

Callum wanted to give a corsage to someone. Rayla had to refrain herself from taking a step back.

 _Of course._ Callum liked someone else. Why would she have any chances? She was an elf from Xadia.

“You okay Rayla?” his voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

“Yeah… I think I need to get get out of here.” She admitted.

“Are you feeling sick or something?” He asked worriedly. He raised his hand to put on her forehead, but Rayla took a step back. She couldn’t bear be near him now.

“D-Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine!” she forced a smile, “I’ll… see ya around, Callum.”

She ran out of the dance floor, containing her tears from falling.

* * *

**May 22 th – 9:33 PM**

Callum watched Rayla leave the gym. He sighed and took a final sip of his drink before crushing his plastic cup and throwing it away on the bin.

“Callum!” He turned to face Claudia and Soren who were walking towards him.

“Did you talk with Rayla?” She asked, almost not being able to contain her excitement.

“Yeah, we got that dumb song that you wanted to play next.” Soren said, nodding towards the DJ they were just done talking to, “what was the name again? _Meant to be?_ ”

“I did talk to Rayla but she… just left.”

“Callum! What did you say to her?!” Claudia screamed and put her hands on her hips.

“Nothing! I didn’t even get a chance to give her this!” he took the corsage out of his pocket.

“You know, this could’ve been easily avoided if you asked her to be your date _before_ the actual prom,” Soren suggested and Callum had to refrain himself from sighing.

“I know! But it’s way harder than you guys make it!” He pouted before his expression fell, “I just want her to be okay, even if she doesn’t like me that way. These last months, we’ve been getting real distant from each other and I don’t want to lose my friendship with her.”

“You two are gonna be okay, Callum,” Claudia said with a small smile.

Callum hoped that was true.

* * *

**July 1 st – 12:30 PM**

_“So, are your dads really okay with me coming with you to their beach house?!”_ Callum asked on the other side of the line. Rayla giggled before answering.

“Sure, Callum! I talked about ya to them before! And I think ya and Ethari have a lot in common. Also, didn’t ya mention ya wanted to travel to the beach to finally learn how to surf with Soren?”

_“Yeah, how did you remember that? I feel like I mentioned that months ago!”_

“I just like keepin’ track of the interests of my best friends, is that a crime?” she smirked and felt the heat dusting her cheeks. The awkward prom experience had left her body months ago thankfully and she was back into her teasing and snarky ways as usual.

 _“Not at all!”_ Callum laughed, the sound like honey to her ears, _“but thanks for thinking of me. It means a lot, Rayla.”_ his voice softened and she could almost picture the dumb and handsome smile he had on his face.

“It’s no problem. I can’t wait to spend my summer with ya.”

 _“Me too. It could be the best summer ever!”_ She almost felt bad at his enthusiasm. She had a lot to tell him. She just needed some time.

“Y-Yeah, the best summer ever.”

* * *

**July 5 th – 8:25 PM**

“You okay?”

Callum’s voice snapped her from her thoughts as she stared out from the porch of the beach house. The moon was almost full and reflecting on the now calm waters of the shore.

“Yeah, I just-” she took a deep breath “have a lot in my head.”

“Graduating from high school took a lot from you, is that it?” Rayla chuckled lightly at his words.

“Yeah, that’s… part of it. I just can’t wrap my head around the fact that it really is over.”

“Well, if it makes you feel better,” Callum approached her and stood by her side, leaning against the fence, “I’m kinda lost too.” He let out a breath, “My parents really want me to do what I want to do, but I sometimes question what that even is.”

“Somethin’ related to art?” she questioned, “Ya’re very talented with yer drawings, every single one of them is beautiful.” She slightly noticed his cheeks got red at her compliments. He cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

“Thanks and- yeah! I think I want to do something with my artistic side, I just don’t know what it’s going to be.” He let out a desperate sigh and closed his eyes in defeat.

“I’m sure that whatever ya chose, ya’ll do great on it.” She smiled at him, feeling her heart flutter when he returned the smile.

“Well, it’s good we both have the summer to think about it. Maybe we’ll even go to the same college!”

Rayla avoided his eyes for a second and hoped he didn’t notice. Her eyes locked again on the moon in front of her before she closed her eyes again and looked at him again.

“Do ya wanna go for a walk? Stretch those legs?” She proposed and Callum smiled, his smile almost outshining the moon.

* * *

“I can’t believe your dads love _Wet Side Story_ and you never told me!” Callum said as they walked on the shore. Rayla rolled her eyes and smiled fondly at him.

“I mean, I had no idea that movie was _so_ important to them. I had no idea this was the movie they saw on their first date almost three decades ago.”

“Still hard to believe the first time you saw it was just last year, even though they’re such big fans of it!”

“What’s so hard to believe about it?”

“ _Wet Side Story_ is a classic! You have to watch the classics!”

“I did watch it!” She swatted him on the arm.

“No, I very clearly remember you getting very distracted after the first 10 minutes of the movie!” he narrowed his eyes and smirked at her.

“Duh! You were the one distracting me, ya dumb human!”

He laughed, not paying any mind at her protests. Tired of his teasing, she pushed him and he toppled down into the warm water of the ocean. Callum groaned as he looked at his wet clothing.

Rayla snickered but stopped them when he looked at her with a confident smirk. Before she could do anything, she was pulled by her hand into the water.

“Callum!” she screamed, feeling the slight shivers of the cold water seeping into her system.

“What?” He inquired, between his own chuckles.

“Look at what ya did!” She protested, pouting at him.

“You started it!” He shot back, smiling at her, clearly not minding their situation one bit.

“It was an accident!” Her pout grew bigger and she crossed her hands over chest, trying not to focus on the wind that was making her shiver slightly.

Callum laughed out loud, crossing his legs in front of him and looking to the sky. Taking the opportunity, Rayla splashed some water onto him, watching his peaceful face become a shocked one. Though it didn’t last, because he splashed some water onto her.

Before they knew, they weren’t almost two adults who had just graduated high school just a couple of weeks before. They were two children, splashing ocean water onto each other, making sure to hit every single spot dry spot, even though there weren’t many by this point.

They weren’t sure how long their silly game lasted but before they knew, they were back on the shore, completely soaked, slightly out of breath.

They sat on the sand and looked out to the horizon. Well, Callum was.

Rayla was currently too wrapped up on the fact that Callum had his hand over hers. She wanted to pull away, but his touch was warming her entire cold and soaked body. She looked up at him, focusing on his face.

It wouldn’t be the first time Rayla noticed that Callum was handsome. Anyone with a third of a brain and a single eye would say the same thing. His piercing emerald eyes that she could drown for hours without a hitch, his sharp jawline that many times was accompanied a soft smile, his chestnut hair that even though it was soaked with salty water, it still managed to maintain the soft aspect that made Rayla want to run her fingers through it. Lips that Rayla had been dreaming for months of kissing it-

“You okay, Rayla?” Callum asked, turning to look at her, the soft smile that haunted her almost mocking her.

In an attempt to hide her very obvious blush, Rayla turned her face away from him, fast enough to make her head spin a little.

“A-Aye, just deep in thought…” she lied, twirling a strand of her brined hair between her finger. She felt Callum squeeze her hand slightly before tucking the strand she was twirling around her finger and tucked behind her pointy ear.

Rayla’s cheeks flushed at an even deeper shade of red at his action and she looked at his deep emerald eyes.

“Rayla?” he called her name and she wondered how could her name sound so wonderful when _he_ said it. It was just her stupid and common name, but still, he made it sound like the most amazing thing.

Callum’s delicate fingers caressed their way to her chin, looking deeply into her eyes. _Could he feel the way her heart was thrumming, almost bursting out of her ribcage?_ Her mind-brain was almost shutting down but Callum’s hand was enough to keep her grounded and awake.

He opened his mouth for a second to say something but he closed immediately after. Her eyes were now drifting back and forth from his emerald orbs to his lips. They stayed in silence for several moments. She felt Callum’s delicate grip on her hands tightening for a slight moment

“Rayla, can I-”

She didn’t wait for him to finish his sentence. She took both sides of his face and crashed their lips together. She thought of pulling back when she heard him gasp but all of that crashed down when he kissed her back.

His hands dropped down and he gripped her waist tightly, bringing them together. Their clothes were still soaked with the ocean water, creating a slightly uncomfortable feeling when they came in contact, but they quickly dismissed that. Rayla’s hands left his face and gripped his hair, pulling lightly on his silky hair.

She had been dreaming of this moment for months and now it was happening. She was kissing Callum. Not on their prom, like she dreamed, but right here, on a beach she used to come by a lot as a kid.

They pulled away and Rayla noticed the slight smirk on his face and glint on his eyes.

“W-What?” Her voice was weak, but who could blame her. She had just kissed her crush of months. Her first friend in a completely new school. The guy with the kindest heart she knew.

Callum caressed her cheek before looking deeply into her eyes.

“Nothing, just…” he stayed silent for a few moments, _“wow.”_

Rayla couldn’t help but smile at him and lean in for another kiss, which he was more than happy to correspond.

They don’t know how long they kissed, but after a while, they were walking towards the beach house, hand in hand.

“So,” Callum started as soon he was able to see the house, “are we telling your dads about our… thing?”

Rayla looked at him, not sure of the response herself.

“I don’t think there’s a way to hide it from them. We will be livin’ with them for the next two months.”

“Yeah, you’re right…” Callum said, his lips turning into a worried grimace.

“Callum, they already like ya, why are ya worried?”

“They like me as your _friend._ We don’t know their reaction if they know we kissed.”

Rayla stopped in her tracks and turned at Callum.

“Do ya regret it?” she asked bashfully.

“What? Rayla, no!” He cupped her face between his hands, “It’s not about you. I don’t regret kissing you and I definitely don’t regret that we have this _thing_ now. I just want to sleep peacefully at night, sure that Runaan won’t slaughter me on my sleep.”

Rayla let out a snort before smiling up at him.

“Don’t worry about them. You already got some points with them because of that stupid movie-”

“Hey!” he pouted his lips in annoyance and Rayla let out another snort. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and buried her face in his chest.

“Don’t think about them. Focus on improvin’ those surfin’ skills when Soren comes over. Focus on ya. Focus on me.”

“That’s kinda easy, you’ve been on my mind for months.” Rayla felt her cheeks heating at his words. He really had been pining over her just as long as she had been for him.

“Focus on us, then. And the amount of fun we’re goin’ to have this summer.” She couldn’t wait to all of their dates, all their long walks on the beach, all their nights where they will cuddle until they both fall asleep, all the mornings where they’ll be too lazy to get up so they will just cuddle even more.

Callum chuckled, resting his chin between her horns.

“Alright. I’ll try it.” He kissed the space between her horns and Rayla felt herself melt.

Maybe this was really going to be _the best summer ever._


	2. Part One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey... So I'm not dead. I'm so sorry for how long it took for me to update this TuT I just got involved in a big and secret project and I had direct all my attention span of a peanut to it but I'm back and finally, this story can begin! Hope you like it!

_Sunny._

That was a word that could describe Rayla almost every day of the summer.

She never liked the sun. After all, she was a Moonshadow elf. But there was no way to deny how good she felt spending hours under the sun with her favorite person, Callum.

She watched from the shore as she saw him surf on the waves. She had never been brave enough to enter the ocean. The only times she did, it was only to wash her feet. Callum was always supportive of her fear of water, never forcing her to do anything and she couldn’t ask for a more incredible person as her partner.

She was also very proud of how far Callum had come with his surfing skills. At the start of the summer, the only thing he could do was stand on top of it, and half of the time he fell. But with strength and perseverance (and maybe a little help from Soren), he was able to learn and take the big waves.

Rayla to the bracelet around her wrist. Callum said the day he gave it to her that if she ever felt alone when he was by himself on the ocean, this bracelet would remind her he had something to come back for.

She sighed and felt her heart tightening.

She truly loved him and he knew that, but still. She was hiding something from him. She wasn’t proud of it and every night they lay in bed together, she swore she was going to tell him.

_She never did._

As Callum approached the shore, his surfing board under his arm and a bright smile. His hair was all soaked and sticking up in random places. He stuck the board on the sand and opened his arms.

Following his sign, she ran to his arms and he spun her in the air before placing her down on the sand and kissing her. She complied, gripping on his UV shirt, full well knowing that her beach robe was probably absorbing some of the water.

They released each other sooner than they wanted and didn’t say a thing as they held each other’s hand as Callum retrieved his board from the sand and they walked back as the sun started to slowly make its way down the horizon.

They walked in silence until Rayla noticed the goofy smile on Callum’s face.

“What?” she asked and he looked at her with his eyes practically glowing.

“Best day ever!” He shouted and Rayla rolled her eyes fondly before laughing a bit.

“Yeah, it _was_ pretty awesome, huh?”

“Awesome? Us being together and spending the day just hanging around doing whatever we wanted?” He smiled and held her hand more tightly, “Awesome wishes it was _this_ awesome.”

Rayla smiled and squeezed his hand back.

“Yeah, it was perfect.” She admits.

“It was.” He looks at the horizon for a second and Rayla feels like this is the time to tell him about it.

“Um, listen, Callum-”

“Wait!” He interrupted her looking excitedly at her face and stopping on his tracks, “did you hear about tomorrow?”

“Oh, ya mean about the 40 feet waves?”

“Yeah! It’s almost unbelievable! There’s this huge storm coming from the east! Stuff like that only happens every 30 years or something!”

“Are ya goin’ to try to drop in a barrel that huge?” Callum only smiled and Rayla shook her head, “Of course ya are.”

Callum laughed and looked at the horizon before shouting, “SUMMER IS NOT OVER YET!” and Rayla felt her face sour.

“Come on, I’m starvin’!” She said, motioning her head to the beach house that had already come into view.

“Race you to the house!” Callum said before kissing her cheek and running towards the entrance.

Rayla stayed behind, her face still down as she watched him proudly race up the small steps to the porch of the house, her feet almost dragging her to it.

“I clearly won.” He said, proudly as he pushed the door open, the surfboard still under his arm, “First thing tomorrow, we go to the beach so I can catch that wave.”

“Callum, about tomorrow-”

“Woah, wait. Hear that?” Rayla tried again but she was unsuccessful as Callum got distracted by a song coming from Ethari’s surfing workshop. They stayed in silence for a few moments before Callum’s brain was able to connect the dots and ran inside the workshop.

Rayla bit her lip in frustration.

“Hey!” Callum said as he pulled open the sliding door. Ethari was curled over a surfing board, examining it closely.

“Hello, Callum.” Ethari said, not bothering to glance back at Callum.

“I can’t believe you’re watching this without me!”

“Well, I was workin’ on fixin’ this board and decided to watch it. But now that ya’re here, I’m not.” Ethari said, finally looking at Callum as he approached his work table.

Rayla sighed as she leaned against the door frame.

“ _Please_ tell me this isn’t-”

“ _Wet Side Story!”_ Both her dad and her boyfriend said at the same time. Rayla saw on the TV screen a girl get wet by a bucket of water and she rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, that.”

They continued watching as all the surfers went inside the restaurant.

“1969, surfers, bikers. Best movie ever made.” Callum said, looking at Ethari for some reassurance. Rayla shook her head and leaned off the frame and entered the workshop properly.

“How can ya both _and_ Runaan like this silliness?” Ethari looked at her, his smile not fading.

“Silliness? Rayla, my moon, this movie defined an entire culture!”

“Exactly!” Callum agreed before taking a deep breath, “A human surfer and a Moonshadow elf share a secret while trying to unite their rivaling gangs as an evil real estate mogul tries to turn their hangout into a resort by building a weather machine which blows up, creating a massive storm!” He let out a breath and looked at his girlfriend, “Silliness? Really?”

“Well, can we watch it later, because I _really_ need to talk to ya.” Rayla held him by his arm, trying to pull him away from the table.

“Just watch my favorite part!” Rayla huffed and let go of him, turning her head to the screen, “When the two leads’ eyes meet and they’re pulled apart by their rivaling gangs.”

 _“_ _♪ I’m not the kind to fall for a guy who flashes a smile_ _♫”_ Rayla watched as the Moonshadow elf sang and the human approached the dance floor. She had to admit if she saw a movie that openly promoted the peace between elves and humans like this, she would’ve been probably more open-minded to humans, _“_ _♪ Don’t usually swoon, but I’m over the moon!_ _♫”_ Rayla saw as she “accidentally” approached the edge of the stage only to be caught by the guy who was passing by as they looked into each other's eyes as she continued singing, _“_ _♪ And now I'm falling for ya, falling for ya! I know I shouldn't but I just can't stop myself from falling for ya, falling for ya! Can't hold on any longer and now I'm falling for you…_ _♫”_

“This is my favorite part right here!” Ethari whispered to Callum as they watched the next scene unfold.

_“Hey! Get yer salty surfer five-fingered hand off my baby sister!”_

_“Get your biker baby sister off our boarding buddy!”_

They watched as a dance battle started between and Rayla had to fight the urge to groan.

“Come on! They sing for _no_ reason! They come out of the water and their hair is totally dry! The girls never surf as well as the boys _and_ they sing for no reason. I had to mention that one again because even a second time, I don’t get why.”

“But it’s always summer, and everyone just sings and surfs!” A knock on the entrance door called Rayla’s attention and she turned away from them.

“Come on! They sing in the ocean and never spit out water!” She rolled her eyes as she approached the door, thinking it was Runaan on the other side. But she was surprised to see Runaan exiting his and Ethari’s bedroom.

She was confused for a second but opened the door anyway.

“Surprise!”

An older elf was on the other side of the door and Rayla took a step back, unintentionally inviting her inside the home as she closed the door behind her. The elf had her silver hair tied in a high bun and two horns sticking out her head with horncuffs. Her face lacked any markings and she was clearly wearing a Moonshadow outfit. Rayla struggled to close her mouth and her eyes were wide. “Well, aren’t ya going to give your grandmother a hug?” She inquired and Rayla awkwardly gave her a hug. “Well, ya are so… Ya look absolutely unacceptable!”

“What?”

“I’m just joking my dear!” Her grandmother laughed and gave her a kiss on the cheek, “It’s good to see ya, Rayla.”

The woman waltz inside the house, looking intensely at the decorations on the walls.

“Why are ya here? I thought ya were comin’ tomorrow.” Rayla inquired, her voice almost breaking.

“Well, ya thought wrong! We are leaving tomorrow. I hoped ya have packed your things.” Rayla was speechless and everything got worse when…

“Ray, what does she mean by leaving tomorrow?” Callum asked and Rayla almost lost her ground. His voice was shaky and confused, just like his expression.

Her grandmother turned around and was clearly confused to see a human inside the house.

“Uh, this is Callum, my b-”

“Callum, I am Rayla’s Grandmother.” She approached him and shook his hand firmly, “I am sure she told ya all about me.” Callum grimaced and looked at Rayla uncomfortably, lightly shaking his head.

“Ray, what does she mean by leaving tomorrow?” Callum asked again, clearly more impatient.

“Lierin.” Runaan said as he approached her and took his husband’s hand.

“Oh, hello Runaan and Ethari.” She gave a slight bow to them.

“It’s good to see ya-” Ethari tried to be polite but she turned around, completely ignoring them.

“I see ya’re still making surfboards, Ethari.” She said giving a quick look inside the workshop, “Oh, ya still have that.” She looked up at a very old but conserved surfboard serving as decoration on the wall. The main colors were the classic Moonshadow: turquoise, dark green, and blue. A crescent and a waxing moon were drawn together on the front with a shiny and glossy white paint.

“ _Still have it?”_ Rayla laughed nervously, “We grew up with legends about this board. It’s part of the family!” Ethari nodded.

“Me, my father and my grandfather found our destiny on it,” Ethari explained, looking lovingly at Runaan.

“There is only one way to _‘find’_ your destiny, Rayla.” Lierin said, turning completely at her granddaughter, “And that is to work hard for it.” Rayla nodded silently.

“Okay! Alright!” Callum shouted, “Rayla, what does she mean by leaving tomorrow?!” Rayla opened her mouth to answer but grandma was faster than her.

“Callum, as of tomorrow, my granddaughter will be attending the exclusive and overpriced and, did I mention exclusive, Preparatory Academy for the Dragonguard.”

“…What?”

“On Xadia, near the Storm Spire.” Callum was speechless and Rayla refused to look in his eyes, twirling a strand of her hair in her finger.

“Uh, Lierin, we should talk about this, please.” Ethari put a hand on Callum’s shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

“There is nothing to talk about, Ethari! This has always been the deal! Isn’t that right, Rayla?”

Rayla gripped tightly at the bracelet on her wrist, before faking a smile, “Yeah. That is correct.” She saw the way Callum’s face fell and her heart shattered, “It’s just that, um… Tomorrow there are these extreme conditions to surf and I want to be there for Callum.”

“Well, he can do this by himself my darling! And aren’t ya afraid of water?” Rayla bit her tongue, “Rayla, your new life begins tomorrow. Your endless summer has… come to an end.”

Rayla felt her eyes watering. She needed to leave.

_So she did._

* * *

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!” Callum said as he finally found Rayla on the back porch of the house.

“Ya don’t understand how hard I tried! I just- I didn’t know how!”

“You’re leaving? Just like that? Why are they making you do this?!”

“They're not makin’ me! It’s my choice!”

“So change your mind!” Callum argued, his voice full of broken trust.

“There’s not enough time. My flight leaves at noon tomorrow.”

“How can you leave? The Storm Spire _is not_ your home!”

“I was really lucky to get into the Program, Callum! And my grandmother said it will pave the way to my future!” Rayla could feel the tears threatening to come out, “I know ya’re upset, and I should’ve told ya! I just… I didn’t know how!” she leaned off the rail of the porch and tried to run, but Callum came after her.

“Ray! Hey! Stop!” He grabbed her by the wrist as she tried to go down the steps of the porch. When she turned around, her eyes were almost leaking with tears and she was clearly one sentence away from crying. Callum held her hand and squeezed it reassuringly, “Please, tell me what was the deal your grandmother was talking about.” Rayla wiped a few stray tears from her cheeks.

“After I lost my parents, the deal I made with my grandmother was that I could do whatever I wanted for highschool, but after I graduated, I would go to the Academy so I could become a member of the next generation of the Dragonguard.”

Callum stayed silent for a moment, clearly considering what she just told him.

“S-So she just shows up to take you away?! Aren’t you happy here?”

Rayla took a deep breath before showing him a small leather notebook on her hand.

“This is my parent’s journal.” She took a deep breath and opened it, selecting a specific page between all the others, “ _‘Most of all, we both dream that our daughter becomes a great success. That she isn’t just pulled through life but marches through it triumphantly.’”_ She finished reading the excerpt, her voice clearly wavering.

“They sound amazing, Rayla.” Callum said and Rayla smiled.

“Yeah, they were.” She breathed before clearing her throat, “They always dreamt about enterin’ the Dragonguard and bein’ part of the most important elite team of Xadia, but, they had me, and a baby that wasn’t exactly planned took a lot of their time and…” she gulped again, “They never got to live out that dream.”

“It’s not your fault, Rayla.”

“I know it’s not. But I also know that I can do what they never had a chance to!”

“You don’t have to be who your grandmother wants you to be. Ray, you can be anything you want!” Callum pleaded.

“Callum, I have to do this!” She let go of his hand and tried to go inside. As she tried to open the door, Callum grabbed her by the wrist and moved to hold her hand.

“What about us?”

“How-” Rayla felt her throat close, “How can there be an _us_ after today?”

“I’ll wait for you!” Callum said, his fingers going to play with the bracelet on her wrist.

“I know what it feels like to miss someone, Callum. And I care about ya _too much_ to ever put ya through that.”

“So, you’re saying that you care about me enough to break up with me?”

“I DON’T WANT TO, CALLUM BUT WHAT CHOICE DO I HAVE?” Rayla shouted, the tears flowing out again.

Callum took a deep breath and leaned on the rail, his head down.

Rayla approached him from behind, putting her chin on his shoulder and slightly nuzzling his neck, basking into his scent. She could see a few tears leaking from his eyes.

“Thank ya… for makin’ this the most awesome year and summer of my life.” She kissed his shoulder and held him tight, “I wish it wasn’t over.”

And she let go of him before going inside to pack her bags, not noticing the way the last rays of the Sun made the Moon of the old board shine.

* * *

“Don’t get distracted Rayla, ya have to pack these.” She told herself as she walked around the room she spent the last summer on.

She sighed as she grabbed some books and pictures from the shelf and put on her hands. With some hesitation, she opened a small wooden chest and put them inside it, including the journal.

As she got to the last item, it was a framed picture of her and Callum on their 1-month anniversary.

They were at the shore and she could see the bracelet he had given her on her wrist as he held her close with a big smile. She remembered how happy she was when he gave her the gift and how safe it always made her feel. Now? The bracelet was inside the chest.

With a heavy heart, she put the frame inside the chest and closed it shut.

As Rayla opened the door of her room, she noticed the old surfboard leaned against the wall as always.

But she also noticed that Callum had grabbed the surfing board that Ethari was fixing yesterday.

She groaned at his lack of attention and went back inside to change her clothes.

With the old surfboard under her arm, much more suitable clothing for the beach, and a bracelet, she headed to the beach.

* * *

Rayla watched the waves crash intensely as she scanned for Callum’s presence on the shore and before she knew it, there he was, exiting the water with a broken surfboard on his hand.

She approached him with a shy smile.

“Hey.” 

“Hey.” Callum repeated, not sure of how to respond before he noticed the board with her, “How did you know my board was broken?”

“With a little bit of somethin’ called _payin’ attention to somethin’ that isn’t a movie._ ” She winked and gave him the board. He smiled and took it before she carefully squeezed his hand, “Good luck.”

“Thanks Ray.” He squeezed it back before kissing the back of it and going for the sea with the other surfers.

Rayla grips her bracelet tightly as she watches Callum go even further into the ocean.

“Rayla?” Ethari asked as he and Runaan spotted her on the sand.

“Just here to watch Callum. He’s really doin’ it.” She said with a proud smile on her face.

“Aye.” Ethari said before Runaan shook his shoulder. Ethari looked at him confused and Runaan sighed.

“I don’t like the looks of this sky.” He said and they all moved their eyes to the clouds. Surely they were quickly turning more and more grey, making the lovely morning look dark.

“Hey look!” Rayla pointed to the surfers falling from their boards and struggling to reach the shore, “This doesn’t look good! He needs to go back! This looks awful!”

Just as they started to worry about it, the lifeguard of the beach climbed his chair, waving a red flag and blowing his whistle.

Rayla saw Callum look back the shore but he just kept going further.

“What’s he doin’?!” Rayla exclaimed, almost cutting off the circulation of her hand with how tight she was holding her wrist.

“He’s not paddlin’ in.” Ethari explained and his voice was shaky too.

“This isn’t good.” Runaan said and Rayla felt her legs shake.

She had to do something.

With the surge of adrenaline going through her veins, Rayla spotted a jetski with a life-vest on the shore. She could hear Runaan and ethari calling for her name as she drapped the life vest around her torso.

_She had to do something._

It was a blur as Rayla went further into the ocean than she ever wanted.

As she got closer to Callum, she shouted, blocking all the waves and water surrounding her and only caring about Callum.

“Callum! Come on! Don’t do it!”

“Rayla, I have to do this for you!”

 _“I don’t want you to do this for me!”_ Callum only shook his head and paddled further into the ocean, “Callum!”

Rayla watched as the barrel of the biggest wave she’d ever seen started to form and Callum dove in. For a moment, he did it.

But he lost balance and the water engulfed him.

 _“CALLUM!”_ Rayla shouted and she felt the tears leaking out.

_She had to do something, anything._

_She was going to do something._

Without thinking straight, Rayla jumped into the water, desperately searching for Callum under the heavy mass of everything she ever feared.

* * *

The waters were calm as the surfing board plopped out of the ocean. For a moment, everything was silent.

That is until Rayla and Callum came up from the water, Rayla desperately griping onto the surfboard and coughing out water.

“You okay?!” Callum asked, swimming close to her.

“Am I _okay?!_ Callum, look where we are!” She said, her voice still sore from all the water she ended up drinking, “Wait, what happened to the storm?” She asked looking around the calm waters. They looked around the clear and sunny sky, not understanding what was happening.

“Come on, let’s get to the shore.” Callum proposed and Rayla sat on top of the board as Callum dragged them to the beach.

As they stepped out of the water, Rayla smacked him on the back of the neck.

“WHAT DID YA THINK YA WERE DOIN’?!” She shouted.

“I wanted you to see me do the waves before you left forever, Rayla!”

“I wanted to see ya safe on the shore, not goin’ through a storm and possibly dyin’!” She pushed him.

“Rayla, I didn’t need saving! I don’t need a hero! That was my last chance to ride that wave and do it for you!” Callum argued setting his board down on the sand, “And instead, I end up here and-”

_Music._

_They heard music._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I'm not sure how I should put the musical parts into the story. Should I write them or just completely skip just giving a brief summary? Something else? Please let me know your thoughts! Your opinion, comments, and kudos are very important to this story and for me!

**Author's Note:**

> I SWEAR THIS IS A TEEN BEACH MOVIE AU I JUST NEEDED TO EXPAND THEIR BACKGROUND BEFORE THE ACTUAL PLOT CAME INTO PLAY!  
> Also, I have no schedule of updating this because I don't work well with them so just subscribe to get notifications on when I'm updating, I guess? Or just go over at my Tumblr and check if there are any updates!  
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